Gun rack



Nov. 22, 1966 J, B. FERRELL GUN RACK Filed Sept. 15, 1964 INVENTOR: 533 2 2529541, W 4. 96

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,286,967 GUN RACK James B. Ferrell, Rte. 3, Gallatin, Tenn. Filed Sept. 15, 1964, Ser. No. 396,546 7 Claims. (Cl. 248-201) This invention relates to a gun rack, and more particularly to a gun rack for mounting a gun in a substantially upright position against a wall support surface.

Heretofore, gun racks have been of a type in which the gun is supported on a wall in a substantially horizontal position, and usually in inaccessible places, requiring that the gun first be lifted before it can be separated from the rack. Those types of gun racks which support the gun in a substantially upright position are usually provided with securing means for completely enclosing either the stock or the barrel, so that the securing means must first be released or removed before the gun can be separated from the rack.

It is therefore, an object of this invention to provide a gun rack, which not only adequately and securely holds and supports the gun, but which renders the gun completely accessible and removable from the rack by merely moving the gun in one lateral direction.

Another object of this invention is to provide a gun rack for adequately and securely supporting a gun in an upright position without any securing means, which must be released or unsecured, before the gun can be separated from the rack.

A further object of this invention is to provide a gun rack including a pair of brackets opening in the same direction and mounted on a fixed support at predetermined locations for holding and supporting the gun.

Another object of this invention is to provide a gun rack including a novel stock bracket and barrel bracket adapted to be fixed to a wall support surface in spaced relation for receiving and supporting the gun by action of gravity, and yet render the gun completely and quickly accessible to the user. 7

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the invention in an operative position supportinga gun;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the stock bracket; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the barrel bracket.

Referring now to the drawings in more detail, FIG. 1 discloses a gun rack including a wall-type support, such as the vertical wall 11 having a flat surface and to which are aflixed the stock bracket 12 and the barrel bracket 13 in spaced relation for receiving a gun such as the rifle 15.

The type of gun adapted to be supported in the rack 10 includes firearms such as a rifle, shotgun, musket and other similar types of shoulder pieces, as opposed to pistols.

The stock bracket 12 includes an elongated butt support member, such as the rectangular butt support plate 17. One end of the support plate 17 is provided with an upstanding toe flange 18 which extends substantially the full width of the support plate 17, and just high enough to adequately engage the toe 19 of the butt 20 of the rifle 15.

Extending substantially the length of the inside edge of the support plate 17 is an upstanding mounting plate 21 which is substantially perpendicular to the butt plate 17 and adapted to fit flush against the surface of the wall support 11. Although the mounting plate 21 may be fixed against the wall surface 11 in any convenient manner, a pair of screw holes 22 through the mounting plate 20 are disclosed in FIG. 2 for receiving a pair of screws "ice 23 secured in the wall support 11 (FIG. 1). The height of the mounting plate 21 is substantially greater than the width of the butt plate 17 in order to provide a more favorable leverage for supporting practically the full weight of the rifle 15, and for reducing the strain on the mounting plate 21 and the engaging portion of the wall surface 11.

Extending substantially the full length of the outside edge of the butt support plate 17 is an upstanding side retaining flange 25. The flange 25 is spaced from the mounting plate 21' a distance slightly greater than the greatest thickness of the rifle butt 20. The height of the flange 25 is just sufiicient to retain the butt 20 and prevent it from sliding outwardly off the support plate 17.

The opposite or heel end 26 of the butt support plate 17 includes no flange or other obstruction and is completely open to permit the rifle butt 20 to slide freely over the plate 17 and over the heel end 26.

As best disclosed in FIG. 1, the stock bracket 12 is fixed to the wall support 11 in such a manner that the plate 17 is inclined downwardly toward the toe flange 18. The angle which the support plate 17 makes with the vertical will depend upon the type of rifle or gun 15 which is supported by the rack 10, but in any event, the bracket 12 must be disposed so that the weight of the rifle 15 causes the toe 19 to gravitate toward and against the toe flange 18.

As disclosed in FIG. 2, the stock bracket 12 may be formed of a one-piece sheet material, such as steel, of suflicient thickness to be rigid enough to support the weight of the rifle 15 without being bent or deformed.

The barrel bracket 13 is also preferably a one-piece sheet material such as steel, but need not have the thickness or strength of the stock bracket 12, since a much smaller proportion of the weight of the rifle 15 will be exerted upon the barrel bracket 13. The barrel bracket 13 includes a substantially flat mounting plate portion 30, adapted to be fixed flush against the wall surface 11, and an arcuate barrel portion 31, concave to receive the bottom portion of the barrel 33. The barrel bracket 13 is completely open in the same direction as the open heel face of the wall support 11, a pair of screw holes 34 are disclosed in FIG. 3 for receiving the screws 35 secured into the wall support 11, as disclosed in FIG. 1.

I As further disclosed in FIG. 1, the barrel bracket 13 is mounted in a fixed position spaced from the stock bracket 12 a distance less than the length of the rifle 15 and spaced above and laterally of the bracket 12 so that the weight of the rifle 15 will cause the bottom side of the barrel 33 to rest by gravity against the arcuate portion 31 of the bracket 13.

It will be noted that the closed side of the arcuate portion 31 is disposed on the same side of the rifle 15 as the toe flange 18, and that the open side of the bracket 13 is disposed in the same direction as the open heel end 26 of the stock bracket 12. Thus, the rifle 15 may be mounted in the rack 10 by inserting the stock 20 through the open heel end 26 and the barrel 33 into the open end of the bracket 13, and moving the rifle 15, or letting it fall by gravity, until the toe 19 of the butt 20 engages the toe flange 18. In this position, the butt 20 is resting firmly on the butt support plate 17, and the bottom side of the barrel 33 is resting firmly against the concave side of the arcuate portion 31 of the barrel bracket 13.

The rifle 15 is removed from the rack 10 by merely reversing the movements for inserting, or mounting, the rifle in the brackets 12 and 13.

It will thus be observed that the gun rack provides a simple, yet effective structure for supporting the rifle and yet provides easy and quick accessibility to the rifle. The rifle 15 may be handled with one hand and either removed or inserted in the rack 10 by a single movement in either one or the opposite direction, that is, into or away from the brackets 12 and 13.

In order to prevent the rifle 15 from beingraccessible to children, the brackets 12 and 13 may, of course, be mounted on the wall at an elevation above the childs reach, but still within easy reach of an adult user. Moreover, the brackets 12 and 13 may be mounted adjacent. a door to provide greater accessibility for the outdoor user.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specification, but only. as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A gun rack for supporting a gun in substantially upright position, comprising:

(a) a wall-type support,

(b) a stock bracket having a closed end and an open end for receiving and supporting the butt of said (0) means for fixing said stock bracket to said support to cause said gun to lean toward said closed end substantially parallel to said support when said gun butt is received in said stock bracket,

(d) a barrel bracket having a closed endand an open end for receiving said barrel,

(e) means for fixing said barrel bracket to said support spaced above and laterally of the closed end of said stock bracket and less than the length of said gun, the closed end of said barrel bracket being disposed in the same direction as the closed end of said stock bracket.

2. The invention according to clairn. 1 in which 'said stock bracket comprises a butt support member and a toe flange extending upwardly from the closed end of said butt support member, said butt support member beinginclined downwardly toward said closed end. I e

3. The invention according to claim 2 further comprising a side flange extending upwardly from one side edge of 'said butt support member and spaced from said wall type support greater than the thickness of said butt;

4. A gun rack for supporting a gunin substantially upright position, comprising:

(a) a wall support having a substantially vertical flat surface, I

(b) a stock bracket comprising an elongated butt support plate member having an upstanding toe flange 4 1 at one closed end of said plate member and an unobstructed heel portion at the other open end of said plate member,

of said butt support plate for engaging flush against said wall support surface,

((1) means for securing said upstanding plate means to said wall support surface so that said butt support plate is inclined downwardly toward said toe flange at a sufficient angle to cause said gun to lean toward said closed end,

(e) a barrel bracket comprising a plate portion forengaging flush against said wall support surface and a closed end and an open end for removably receiving said barrel,

(f) means for fixing said plate portion to said wall support surface to space said barrel bracket above and laterally from the closed end of said stock bracket a distance less than the length of said gun,

(g) the closed end of said barrel bracket and the closed end of said stock bracket being disposed in the samedirection, and the open ends of said barrel bracket and said stock bracket being disposed in the opposite direction.

5. The invention according to claim 4 in which said i stock bracket'further comprises an upstanding side flange;

comprising thejoutside edge of said butt support plate member, said side flange being spaced from said support. plate member a'distance greater than the thickness of said .References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 554,252 2/1896 Falk 211-64 2,869,729 1/1959 Hayden 21164 2,919,058 12/1959 Thompson 2244-1 3,007,581 11/1961 Moore 211-64 References Cited by the Applicant UNITED STATES PATENTS.

481,188 8/1892 Northam. 7 1,837,930 12/1931 Zimmerman.

CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner.

K. J. WINGERT, Assistant Examiner,

(c) upstanding plate means comprising the inside edge 

1. A GUN RACK FOR SUPPORTING A GUN IN SUBSTANTIALLY UPRIGHT PORTION, COMPRISING: (A) A WALL-TYPE SUPPORT, (B) A STOCK BRACKET HAVING A CLOSED END AND AN OPEN END FOR RECEIVING AND SUPPORTING THE BUTT OF SAID GUN, (C) MEANS FOR FIXING SAID STOCK BRACKET TO SAID SUPPORT TO CAUSE SAID GUN TO LEAN TOWARD SAID CLOSED END SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO SAID SUPPORT WHEN SAID GUN BUTT IS RECEIVED IN SAID STOCK BRACKET, 